Instructors should configure their assignments in Canvas according to the grading criteria found on their course syllabi.
In the Assignments area of your course, you can create grading categories for assignments (assignment groups) and apply weightings to each category. You can also use the Assignments area to set up special rules like "drop lowest score" or "never drop a specific assignment."
Article Contents
How to add an assignment group
How to add special rules like "drop lowest score" or "never drop a specific assignment"
How to add an assignment group
1. In Canvas, click Assignments in the left-side navigation links and click the + Group button (top-right corner of page).
2. Type the name of your new assignment group (E.g., quizzes, assignments, reports, etc.) and click Save.
How to create weighted grades
1. In the Assignments area, click the three dots button (top-right corner of page) and then click Assignment Groups Weight.
2. Click the checkbox to enable weight final grade based on assignment groups. Then, enter the percentages from your syllabus and click Save.
Note: In rare instances you may be unable to type numbers into the percentage fields. To get around this, simply be sure you have clicked to enable the weighted grading and then click Save. After doing this, repeat the steps above and you should be able to enter the numbers for your percentages.
You will now see that your assignment groups have weights showing (see the badges in top-right corner of each group, near the + and three dots buttons).
How to add special rules like "drop lowest score" or "never drop a specific assignment"
1. Click the three dots on an assignment group (right side of assignment panel) and click Edit.
2. You can customize your assignment group by adding special rules (See screenshot below). After configuring any of these settings, click Save.
A. Drop Lowest Score - The gradebook will ignore the specified number of low scores when calculating students' final grades.
B. Drop Highest Score - The gradebook will ignore the specified number of high scores when calculating students' final grades.
C. Never Drop - The gradebook will never drop a specific assignment in this category. This could be used to ensure that an important exam or assignment is not dropped, even if it is lower than other scores in the category.